As you might know, in February of this year, TikTok paid an astounding $5.7 million in fines after CARU referred a case against the app to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). TikTok (aka Musical.ly) is a platform that allows users to create and post short videos lip-syncing to music, in addition to social networking aspects. Now, concerns have arisen about how children’s data is collected  in the United Kingdom. Information Commissioner, Elizabeth Denham, told a parliamentary committee, “We’re looking at the messaging system, which is completely open, we’re looking at the kind of videos that are collected and shared by children online. We do have an active investigation into TikTok right now, so watch this space.” Under the EU’s general data protection regulation (GDPR), a company can be fined up to 20 million euros, or 4% of revenue, whichever is higher for violations. In response, TikTok released a statement saying, “We cooperate with organizations su...

Data Privacy Day (January 28th) is an international effort to empower individuals to take ownership of their online presence and inspire businesses to respect privacy. To celebrate, we’re sharing tips companies and small business can use to help ensure that a website or online service complies with COPPA. 1.    Draft Your Own Privacy Policy You would be surprised how many companies cut and paste other privacy policies or templates. Unfortunately, privacy is not a one-size-fits-all type of situation. You need to draft a policy for your site or service that accurately reflects your specific privacy practices or you render the document useless. Make sure you include everything that applicable laws require. But be straight and to the point. The FTC frowns upon including unrelated or confusing information, which serves only to misdirect readers’ attention from what is important. 2.    Shout it From the Rooftop Make sure that all your third-party service providers...